Read The Darkest Hour for Free Online Page A

coming up on his knees.
    “One.”
    “Two.”
    “Three.”
    The two men dove from behind the crates, and ducked and ran for the jungle.
    The world around them went eerily quiet when they reached the area where P.J. was positioned. It made Ethan uneasy.
    Moments later, Steele, Renshaw, and Baker staggered through the growth dragging Cole between them. Ethan glanced around to see Sam holding his hand over his ear as he listened intently to traffic. He looked up at Ethan, his expression grim.
    “What?” Ethan demanded. “What the hell is going on? Where are Van, Garrett, and Rachel?”
    Sam motioned for the others to gather, and the knot in Ethan’s stomach grew bigger.
    “Goddamn it, Sam, talk.”
    Sam motioned for quiet. “Okay, this has to be quick. Garrett and Van are looking for Rachel. They haven’t turned anything up yet. Renshaw, you and Baker get Cole and get the hell back to the chopper. The rest of you fan out. Let’s find Rachel and get the hell out of here.”

CHAPTER 4
     
    MARLENE Kelly stepped out of the bathroom and padded across the bedroom floor toward the bed where her husband was sitting up reading. As she neared, he lowered the book and took off his glasses.
    “You look worried,” he observed.
    She managed a faint smile, amused by the fact that after all these years, he still had a knack for stating the obvious. He couldn’t exactly be called intuitive when she’d moped around the house the entire day.
    She pulled back the covers and slid under the sheets. As she settled against the pillows, she crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “I am worried.”
    Frank turned on his side and propped his head in the palm of his hand. “About?”
    “Ethan.”
    He blew out his breath. “I thought we agreed that it was good that he finally joined his brothers? Does a man no good to stay locked up in that house with all her things.”
    “I just worry that he wasn’t ready,” she said unhappily. “Rachel’s death affected him badly.”
    “Our boys will take good care of him. You know that. Sam wouldn’t let him go out if he wasn’t confident in Ethan’s abilities.”
    “You’re right, I know. I just worry. I want him to be happy again.”
    Frank touched her cheek, his calloused fingers tracing the faint wrinkles at her temple. “He will be. It’ll take time.”
    She frowned when she heard a sound downstairs. She sat up, Frank’s hand sliding from her skin. Then she turned to her husband. “Did you hear that?”
    “Hear what?”
    She huffed in exasperation. “That sound. It came from the kitchen.”
    He stiffened and put a hand on her arm when she started to get up. “You stay here. I’ll go down.”
    “We should just call the police,” she hissed.
    He gave her a look of annoyance as he headed toward the closet. “It’s probably just a mouse. No need to get Sean over here for nothing.”
    He disappeared into the closet and returned seconds later with a shotgun.
    “Frank, don’t you dare mess up my kitchen!”
    He waved her off and walked out the door. Marlene reached for the phone. Typical Kelly man. All things could be solved with firearms. Not that she had anything against them, but she didn’t want a hole in her newly done walls.
    She gripped the phone, determined that if she so much as heard a peep she was calling Sean, and she didn’t give a damn if he had to get out of bed or not.
    “What the—Hey, you come back here!” Frank roared.
    Marlene winced when a crash sounded. Her fingers were pounding the phone keypad when she heard Frank again.
    “Marlene, get down here,” he yelled.
    She flew out of bed, the phone to her ear. When she hit the bottom of the stairs and then rounded the corner into the kitchen, she skidded to a halt, staring at the bizarre scene in front of her.
    “Get off of me!”
    Marlene stared down at the screeching girl lying facedown while Frank sat on her in the middle of the kitchen floor. Frank was rubbing his hand and cursing with every